In the early 2000s, Derek Raine, a physicist at the UK’s University of Leicester, spearheaded a program to immerse undergraduates in physics, math, biology, and chemistry in a setting that highlights commonalities across those fields. In the ensuing years, the program has changed with political and financial winds, but key elements persist: It experiments with new teaching methods, emphasizes teamwork, and embeds communication skills.
For several decades, researchers around the world have been encouraged to forge connections across disciplines; funding agencies, for example, commonly call for joint proposals from researchers in different fields. A smattering of programs, some founded earlier than the one at Leicester, introduce that philosophy at an earlier stage in people’s education.
Several Canadian universities have embraced integrated approaches to teaching science, and a few programs exist in the US and elsewhere. Some programs last four years, such as those at Leicester; at McMaster University in Hamilton,...
